The Dreams of a Butterfly
by IcyKali
Summary: A beautiful young woman from Japan, who also knows ninjitsu, moves to New York to open a dojo. One fateful night, she meets the turtles. Will love blossom between them? What is this mysterious girl's even more mysterious past, and is she more than she lets on?
1. A Chance Meeting

It was a wet, miserable, all too warm winter night in NYC. A slow-falling rain fell through the veils of fog. It was the perfect time for a crime to be committed, in our favorite turtles' minds. They were out people watching in front of their favorite pizzeria, Vinnie's. It was fun to watch for potential criminals when you had a pizza. Then again, what wasn't fun with a pizza?

Everything seemed pretty boring, until Leonardo spotted an old lady taking a shortcut home through a dark alleyway.

"Everybody knows that's a bad idea! Why do they keep doing it?" he asked, to no one.

The turtles ran across the damp sidewalk to look into the alley, and sure enough, they heard the woman scream. Fearing the worst, they drew their weapons and rushed into the darkness. There was a tattooed gang-member holding a long knife to the throat of the shivering old woman.

Before Leonardo could yell a "Go green machine!" something bright shimmered through the air, momentarily distracting the thug. Suddenly, a thin figure leapt down behind him, and jabbed his arm with something sharp. The thug yelled and dropped his knife, letting the old woman scramble out of the alley. The turtles leapt onto an awning to avoid being seen, and then jumped back down when the woman was out of their vision.

The thug gripped his injured arm. "Who the hell are you?" he yelled into the dark of the alley.

A high giggle was heard. "Oh, just the average, fun-loving girl. You're certainly bulky, aren't you? Your strength could be used for such a better purpose."

Indeed, a slender young woman emerged from the shadows, into the thug's and the turtles' sight. She looked like a martial artist; she wore a pale blue gi overtop a scarlet leotard, and held a kunai with blood dripping off of It in her right hand.

"Flattery will get you nowhere, bitch!" yelled the thug. He charged towards her.

The turtles decided to intervene. Michelangelo threw his grappling hook around the man's legs, and yanked them out from under him. The others took out a rope they had conveniently brought along, and tied him up.

"Let's leave him here for the police," said Leonardo. He turned to the woman. "You seem like a great fighter!"

She giggled again. "That's so nice of you! I've been training for years."

Donatello stepped forward. "Hey, uh, if you mind me asking, how are you able to carry around kunai when that's ill—" he trailed off when he saw her step into the light of a streetlamp. All four turtles gasped. She had shining chocolate-colored hair with blond highlights, and almost magical purple eyes. She had an enchanting smile. She was small, only a bit taller than the turtles themselves, and had perfectly-sculpted muscles.

"I'm a martial arts instructor," she said. "I came from Japan to open my own dojo. My name is Chou Aska, but you can call me Aska! Or Aska-chan, if you like!" She winked.

Mikey's mouth was hanging open. "Woah, you're a mondo bodacious-looking dudette, Aska," he said.

"Yeah," said Raph, "and you're really agile. But how come you're not, you know, freaking out right now?"

Aska was surprised by the question. "Oh? Why would I be? Aren't you—"

"Mutants, yeah," said Mikey. "Let's count our blessings that we have an open-minded gal here, guys."

"Let's take her to see Splinter!" said Leo. "He'd be glad to meet a fellow martial arts master."


	2. A Mysterious Stranger

Splinter was enjoying some medicinal tea when the turtles returned to the lair. He was startled when he heard five sets of feet walking inside, and more shocked when he heard a feminine laugh. He whipped his head around.

Leonardo was smiling. "Sensei, we met this wonderful girl! She's beautiful, and she also knows ninjitsu!" He turned to Aska. "Aska, this is Master Splinter. Master Splinter, Chou Aska."

Aska's eyes widened. "Why, you're the furriest one I've ever seen!"

The turtles looked at each other, confused. "Uh, Aska," said Raphael, "you mean you've met other mutants in Japan?"

She seemed embarrassed. "Uh… mutants? No, not personally."

Splinter cleared his throat. "Well, Miss Chou, my sons have certainly taken a liking to you."

Aska blushed, and sat down on a cushion. "Maybe it's that I'm a ninja like them… I've been training to be a ninja for a very long time now. But—" She sighed. "I've never truly understood the art. No matter how long I train for, my ki won't flow properly."

"Hey, no problem," Raph said. "It took us ten seasons to really get it, and even now… ki whiz, I'm always losing my kis."

Aska laughed. "You sound like a real comedian!"

Michelangelo snorted. "You should see what I can come up with, dudette. How do you turn yourself into a knot? You just tai chi!"

Leonardo glared at them both, and quickly sat down next to Aska. "You know, Aska, I could show you some ki-strengthening techniques tomorrow, if you want."

Donatello, not to be outdone by his brothers, rushed to bring Aska some tea.

Aska blushed. "Y-You four really don't have to do this—"

Splinter was puzzled by his sons' behavior. He decided to change the subject. "Miss Chou," he said, "who taught you the way of the ninja?"

Aska turned back to him, smiling her enchanting smile. "Under my sensei, Master Sutoku," she replied. Splinter thought her eyes were positively glowing. They instantly put him at ease. He felt a sense of being home, like everything would be alright.

Splinter turned back to the turtles. "It's time for April's live broadcast, is it not?"

"That's right! It totally slipped our minds!" said Don. "We had better get right on that."

The four turtles ran to their living room, and turned on the TV. There was April, reporting for Channel 6.

_"Breaking news! There's been a robbery at the Jewelry Store just three blocks down the street from our news building! This is the third robbery this week!"_

Leonardo crossed his arms. "Let's get on this right away!"

The ninja turtles raced towards back towards the lair's exit, but Aska was standing in the way.

"You're leaving so soon?" she asked. "I wished that we could get to know each other more, first…"

"It's our duty to protect the city," said Leo.

Mikey perked up. "Wait, dudes! We can bring her along! You saw how she helped us get that punk earlier. She can handle this!"

"I'd love to help bring robbers to justice!" Aska bounced up and down up her heels.

"Great! Nothing brings people together more than fighting for the same cause," said Raph.

The four of them left, leaving Splinter to sip his tea.

_Why, _he thought, _is the name Sutoku familiar?_


	3. Mein Swallowtail

The rain had finally stopped by the time the turtles and their new friend reached the jewelry store. Two police cars were parked outside, sirens blaring. The humid fog and the contrasting flashing lights made the turtles feel claustrophobic and agitated.

April O' Neil was there with her news van and recording equipment. She waved to the turtles as they emerged from the fog, but hesitated when she saw Aska.

"Hey April," said Leonardo, "where'd those thieves go?"

She pointed down the street. "They went that way," she said. "The police followed them into an alley. The robbers had weapons, though, so maybe they could use some backup."

Leo nodded. "Let's go, guys! Aska!"

The turtles ran towards the alley.

"Hey, wait!" yelled April. "Would you care to explain—"

Aska winked at her before following the turtles, leaving April floundering behind.

The five ninjas, using the fog to their advantage, peered into the alleyway. Somehow, the two robbers had managed to knock out three policemen, and were holding them at gunpoint. Only one terrified officer was still standing, and he bolted as soon as the turtles and Aska showed up.

"Man, humans sometimes…" mumbled Donatello.

"No kidding," said Raphael. "They can be such hypocrites…" he turned to Aska. "…uh, no offense."

Aska grinned. "Heh, none taken. I don't understand them half the time, myself."

The turtles drew their signature weapons, but Aska didn't take out a weapon.

"Uh, Aska," said Michelangelo, "are you gonna use your bare fists?"

"That's right," she said. "I'd like to do this the old fashioned way."

"Old fashioned way?" asked Don. "Humans have had weapons for—"

"No time for banter," whispered Leo. "Michelangelo, use your grappling hook to climb up the building with me. Aska, Donatello, Raphael, distract the robbers. Michelangelo and I will leap down and get them, and then the five of us will defeat them and free the officers!"

They all agreed on the plan. Mikey swung his grappling hook and started climbing up with Leo. The other three ninjas dashed into the alleyway.

One thief turned to face them. He pointed his gun at Don, and his grip on it was shaking. Clearly, he had heard of the turtles' spotless track record for stopping crime.

Don shook his bo at him threateningly. "If you and your partner don't release those cops, we'll be forced to do this the hard way."

The nervous robber looked like he was about to crack. "You know, John, maybe we should just give it up, you know these turtles are really… eh? Where'd you go?"

Don and Raph shared a confused look. They didn't have time to puzzle over it for very long, though, because Leo and Mikey leapt down from the building, landing behind the man. Leo poked the robber's back with the point of a katana, and Mikey began to tie him up with the grappling line.

"We're safe!" Leo called to Raph and Don. "Help us carry these officers out of here."

The two turtles walked up to Leo, and each of them took an officer over the shoulder.

"Hey, where did that second guy go? And… hey, wait? Where's Aska?" asked Raph.

The turtles thought they saw something bright flicker behind them. They whirled around, and there was Aska.

"I took out the second man," she said, happily. "I just wanted to help out without disrupting anything."

"Aska, that's amazing!" yelled Leo."But… where did he go?"

"Oh, I turned him over to the proper authorities."

Eventually, more police cars showed up, and the turtles and Aska left the scene. The turtles wanted to go find April again. After all, they had sort of brushed her off before. When they found her, she was already packing up her van.

"Hey guys," she said harshly. "Now would you be so kind as to properly introduce your new female ninja friend?"

"Oh, of course," said Mikey. "This is Aska. She's so amazing! Her ninja clan invented the most popular puzzle game ever, Sudoku!"

Aska looked embarrassed. "Uh, actually, my master is Sutoku, not Sudoku…"

The turtles laughed, but April did not. "Mm hmm, well, run along and go play with your new girlfriend. I have a lot of overtime I could be doing." She got back into the news van and drove off.

"She's not my girlfriend!" yelled a frustrated Leo.

"Hey, I think she was claiming Aska was my girlfriend, not yours," said Raph.

"No, she meant me!" yelled Don.

"Woah, dudes!" Mikey interjected. "We can argue after a pizza. Anyway, she obviously meant me."

His brothers glared at him, but agreed that pizza would be nice.

"Aska, what kind of pizza would you like? You must be starving," said Don.

"I'm not hungry," she said. "I'm just too high on adrenaline to eat now! I'll just have a tiny bit."

"Well, more for us," said Mikey.

As the five ninja went off to order from their favorite pizza parlor, April completed her short drive back to Channel 6. She sighed and got out of the van, prepared to record the evening report.

As she walked to the entrance, she muttered angrily. "I can't believe the turtles would get a new girl, who's a better ninja than I am, and whose name also starts with an A… I guess I can complain to Irma about—hey, what the?"

April snapped out of her jealous reverie when she saw an abandoned handgun in front of one of the building dumpsters. She ran over to it, her investigative instinct taking over, and she noticed a suspicious crimson splatter on the ground. She struggled to lift the dumpster's lid, and it eventually creaked open. What she saw made her scream. A mutilated corpse had been hastily stuffed inside. The limbs were partially torn off, and the abdomen had been ripped open. There was just a gaping hole in the torso where the internal organs should have been, and there were huge gnashes on the body, as if it had been the prey of a giant wild animal.

April swallowed hard, trying not to vomit. _Let's look on the bright side, _she thought. _At least I have a story for later…_


End file.
